3 Years Ago Sandra Hughes Went Into the Woods

In June 2020, Sandra Hughes decided to change her life completely. Until June 2020, Sandra lived in Hawaii, but once the pandemic hit, she decided she wanted to live out in nature.

Sandra loved the outdoors and has been described as a survivalist; she also trained to be a Park Ranger. Sandra was 54 years old and wanted to go on a long camping trip.

By June 26, 2020, Sandra had relocated to Northern California, and when she spoke with her family, she let them know her plans. Sandra was planning on taking a solo camping trip and would also be isolating herself in nature. She wasn't sure where she would end up but thought she might go to Yosemite.

Her family showed no worry as they knew Sandra had learned survival skills. However, this changed when hikers found an abandoned campsite near Johnson Meadow on July 2, 2020. The hikers described the belongings and gear were strewn all around, and the site was in disarray.

The hikers then called the sheriff's office to report their findings. When Sheff notified Sandra's family, they said she was not like her; she was very organized and would not leave her campsite in such a state. The family described Sandra as 5'3 ¨ and around 150 pounds, with wavy brown hair and brown eyes; however, she had dyed her hair blue at this point.

The last report of anyone seeing Sandra was on July 4, 2020, when some hikers reportedly saw her. They described her as barefooted, with a bruise on her face, and she refused assistance. At this time, the hikers were unaware that she was a missing person, but once they returned to town, they saw signs up and reported that they had seen her.

A few days later, there was another suspicious discovery.

"A sleeping bag matching her recent REI purchase was found a few days later, off trail, 2.5 miles north of the accident scene and just inside the Yosemite National Park boundary," the park spokesperson said.

Then, on July 5, 2020, her silver Saab was found on a stump in a ravine near the Chiquito Creek trailhead. It collided with a tree; however, based on the damage, officials believed it was going very slowly upon collision. They decided to leave the car, hoping she would return.

At this point, an entire search team was looking for Sandra; Deputies and volunteers searched Kern, Tulare, and Fresno counties, and the California Office of Emergency Services provided communications. The Califonia National Guard Blackhawk helicopter was even deployed for an aerial search. Canines were on the ground; however, nothing was found.

On August 9, 2020, a report came in from two hunters who reportedly saw a woman leaning against a tree along road 5S01 near Beasore Road. It was near the area of Chiquito Creek near the Portuguese Overlook; they attempted to see if she needed help. They reported:

"She did not wave them down, attempt contact, or appear distressed," the sheriff's office said.

They reported she looked skinnier than in the photos, but it was her from what the hunters saw. After that, there were no more sightings for a year.

The family of Jake Gorba, his wife Victoria, and their three children were driving to Shuteye Peak and had stopped to eat lunch. While eating lunch, their three-year-old son Kaiden began pointing to a meadow. He then went on to tell his parents that a woman was lying face down with her legs straight up in the air, and she was unable to speak or move and needed help.

According to Victoria, he stated

"He flat out told us, 'Mom she's dead, she needs our help and that's when I got the goosebumps and I was like, oh my gosh," He goes, "yeah there's a lady over in the meadow in a black shirt' and I got goosebumps," said Victoria, "He says 'she needs our help but she's dead and she's laying face down with her legs up and she can't talk to me but she's over there we need to go help her.'"

They checked the meadow and saw nothing. The family was in contact with the Madera County Sheriff's Office and searched the area. However, nothing was discovered. Kaiden also pointed out her photos when asked to identify the woman he saw and talked with; he did identify Sandra Hughes.

Sandra Hughes has not been seen again, and she has not been found.